RALEIGH (May 26, 2021) – A new directive from Gov. Roy Cooper will make $31.5 million available to help graduating high-school seniors attend North Carolina community colleges, as well as $12.5 million to help students who stopped out of college return to finish their degrees.
In all, Cooper announced Monday that he will direct $51 million in federal funds to help North Carolina students whose educations were disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic access and complete higher education.
The funds from North Carolina’s share of the Governor’s Emergency Education Relief Fund (GEER) will include:
- $31.5 million for the Longleaf Commitment, to provide grants of at least $2,800 a year to cover tuition and fees for recent high-school graduates from low- to moderate-income households to attend community college for the next two years. Students must be North Carolina residents, graduate from a North Carolina high school this year and be a first-time college student. The grants will be offered only from the Fall 2021 to the Spring 2023 semester.
- $12.5 million for Longleaf Complete, an effort to help students who have attended a community college, a UNC System school or independent college or university but left without a degree. The governor’s office pointed out that more than 1 million North Carolinians are considered such “part-way home” students.
- $5 million to rapidly expand mental-health services at UNC System campuses. The system says that 8 in 10 students said the pandemic negatively affected their mental health.
The governor’s office noted that – unlike in other recessions – enrollment fell at North Carolina community colleges during the pandemic (as it did nationwide).
Enrollment in curriculum programs was down 20% in Fall 2020,1 and the pandemic posed a threat to the state’s ability to reach a goal of 2 million North Carolinians ages 25-44 with a high-quality credential or degree by 2030.2
“The GEER funds announced today will provide much-needed relief for the state’s community colleges and universities, help us continue to build and grow a successful and diverse workforce, and provide students equitable access to postsecondary education,” Cooper said.
The governor said the directive is a first step toward a more robust NC Guarantee grant program that still must be negotiated with the General Assembly.
Under that proposal, Cooper wants to use American Rescue Plan funds to provide students from households with incomes up to $60,000 at least $6,000 in state and federal grants toward attendance at any UNC System institution or NC community college.
“While we work with legislators to fund the NC Guarantee, today’s graduates need help immediately,” Cooper said.
NC Community College System President Thomas Stith says he expects community colleges to lead the state’s recovery from the pandemic.
“Education translates into opportunity, and I thank Gov. Cooper for his decision to use federal funds to extend higher-education opportunities for students to attend community colleges,” Stith said.3
At a webinar Wednesday hosted by myFutureNC, officials from the NC Community College System and the governor’s office emphasized that as long as an eligible student applies to a North Carolina community college and completes the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), the State Education Assistance Authority will automatically award funds to the student.
“There is not a grant application,” said Dr. James “JW” Kelley, Associate Vice President for Student Services at NCCCS.
Geoff Coltrane, the Senior Education Advisor to Cooper, said undocumented students or students who are subject to Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) are not eligible for the grants, but they are eligible for aid through pandemic relief funds previously approved by Congress.
Kelley said colleges can work with students who have immigration issues to make a variety of other scholarships available as well.
More information on Longleaf Commitment Grants is available here.
1 NC Pandemic Recovery Office.
2 https://files.nc.gov/governor/documents/files/210524-GEER-II-Fact-Sheet_final-1.pdf. 3https://governor.nc.gov/news/governor-cooper-announces-514-million-education-grants-new-financial-aid-program.
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